Free Wallflower by William Bayer Page B

of the therapist's office transcends even the patient's death."
    Janek paused. The woman was more authoritative than he expected. He understood he would have to tread gently if he was going to get any information.
    "Yeah, I've heard that, Dr. Archer, but her mother, her legal heir, has given consent."
    Dr. Archer nodded. "So she told me. But you have to understand, there's a principle involved. If I make an exception, violate my pledge of confidentiality, then where do I draw the line?" She smiled. "My oath binds me to silence. Unless, of course, I learn that someone is about to commit an act of violence. And that, I'm afraid, is not the case here."
    Oh, shit! A real hard-ass! "I notice you call her Jessica," he said.
    "That was her name."
    "We all called her Jess."
    "So did I, Lieutenant. But I'm not speaking to her now. I'm speaking about her, and as you can probably tell, I'm feeling just a little uncomfortable doing that."
    Dr. Archer, Janek noticed, pursed her lips into a little smile at the end of every sentence. It was a nervous habit, not unattractive or disconcerting, but he found it slowed him down.
    "If it will make it any easier for you, Doctor, I already know a lot. We have her diary. We know about the sex group. I've already spoken with Greg Gale, and he's confirmed everything she wrote. If it's a question of protecting Jess's reputation, please believe that's foremost in my mind. I'm not going to repeat anything you tell me, and her diary won't be leaked. I guess what I'm saying is I hope you'll reconsider. My first priority, which I'm sure you share, is to find the person who killed her."
    As he spoke, Dr. Archer nodded along. " Yes, yes, that's true, that's certainly true. And I shall certainly think the matter over." She paused, smiled. " Now why don't we start by talking a little about your own relationship with Jessica? I think that would help me to better understand your interest."
    She was such a nice woman, so clearly attuned to listening, that even though Janek was not in the mood to unburden himself, he soon found himself speaking of his sense of loss. He spoke, too, of his discomfort with thoughts of Jess's sex life, his overreaction when Glickman called her names, and the tight control he had had to exert upon himself with Greg Gale the night before.
    "It's as if suddenly I have to deal with a side of Jess I never thought about before." Janek realized he was speaking to this woman much as he had on the telephone to Monika.
    Dr. Archer nodded. Indeed, she understood. But then she wondered if it was really necessary for Janek to deal with that side of Jess at all.
    "I think it is," he said. "That's why I'm here. I need to know everything she did."
    "Do you really need to, Lieutenant?"
    "I think so. I'm surprised you'd even ask."
    Dr. Archer settled back. "You're saying that to pursue her killer, you must delve into every aspect of her character. I question whether that's true. My suggestion, and I make it with timidity and respect, is that you ask yourself why you're so disturbed by the intimate material you've so far uncovered. Is it Jessica you want to understand, or are you really seeking to understand yourself?"
    Janek stared at her. It was an interesting suggestion, but he'd come for information, not therapy or analysis.
    "What I'm saying," Dr. Archer continued, "and I emphasize I do so without making any kind of value judgment, is that you possibly were and perhaps still are overly involved with your goddaughter. Perhaps you had unconscious fantasies about her. Perhaps you longed for her in some way you don't fully understand. And now that she's been so tragically killed, you use that as an excuse to delve into the most intimate aspects of her life. I suppose what I'm really asking, Lieutenant, is whether you're the right person to be handling this investigation. I certainly don't presume to know the answer. I merely raise the question."
    A maddening, if fascinating, forty minutes, Janek thought